Dragon Star
by Sky Hunter
Summary: When Pern is found by a not so nice extraterrestrial race, bad things happen. This is the story of some of the survivors.Rated M for safety.


Disclaimer: Dragonriders of Pern is copyright to Anne McCaffrey, I make no claim to it, having more than enough with managing my own worlds. All characters in this story, with the exception of Toric, are mine.

Compared to the frantic activity of the so-called progress caused by the AIVAS that seemed to infect every single Weyr, Hold and CraftHall throughout Pern these days, the quiet watches at the bridge of the Yokohama were bliss compared to that. Let his fellow riders obsess over and praise all this new technology, K'ryn had never particulary cared about it. Though he had to admit.., it was really nothing like relaxing with a book from one of the many printing halls throughout Pern while keeping an eye on the data coming in from one of the handful of probes which had been sent out during the last couple of turns to map the asteroids and other objects in the system which could prove a danger to Pern.

Certainly K'ryn didn't understand more than a small precentage of the data passing over the screens, but he knew enough to know what to do if the ancient spaceship's computers received data about a object which might become a potential hazard. Not that he was supposed to do much else than to give the distant probe instructions to keep watching the object it had marked, and tell his superiors down at the planet about the alert.

It could not be denied that there wasn't much of a point in his assignment, during the time since he had gone to the Yokohama for his first watch about one and a half turns ago, only three alerts had came from the probes. Still, the payment was acceptable and he certainly didn't object to the free time being on watch provided him, so as long as his employers believed the job to be necessary-- he certainly wouldn't object.

Stretching his feet, K'ryn grinned as someone snorted into his ear.

:_Speak for yourself_, his blue-- Atemith, snorted.

And with a rustle of his wings, the small blue yawned widely as he stood up:_this place is warm, but I like the sun more. There's no proper wind here, I sleep too much when we are here too_:

K'ryn reached back to give the blue an affectionate pat, "I know, I know. But now when we really can't fight Thread anymore, this gives us something to do. And I promise that we'll go hunting at the Southern Continent when we're done with our watch, it's no more than half a day left remember" he said.

Then he glanced over at the nearest clock to make sure that he was right about the time, "we should be getting some company soon too. The parts for those new probes are supposed to be taken up here today, in a few minutes if they are on schedule, I believe".

:_Yes..._:

Atemith nodded, but didn't sound too sure about what K'ryn had said was a good thing or not.

The blue was generally content with sleeping or watching Pern from space during their watch, but some days, like this one-- he became restless and bored.

Giving the blue's head a light push so he was looking in the right direction, K'ryn pointed to the fore screen, "go and enjoy the view for a bit, can you? I believe the dragons bringing the equipment may stay for a while, their riders are involved in the project after all, you can join them in the cargo bay when they arrive".

Atemith started towards the screen, the blue's wings tightly folded so that he wouldn't know anything over, but then he suddenly stopped-- eyes whirling with blue and green as he turned to look at the back of the bridge. Then he chirped a welcome as another dragon carrying two passengers arrived along with a brown firelizard, which immediately headed for the forward screen.

"Hi there K'ryn, and Atemith. I hope that you'll forgive us for disturbing you up here, but I really needed to get away from those lessons of mine..." the rider of the newly arrived dragon said. Then she quickly turned away to assist her companion, a man who seemed to be in his early seventies, down from the dragon's neck.

K'ryn had seen her nervous smile however, and he sighed.

"I don't mind some company no.." he began, inclining his head in a greeting to both of them, "but you are a senior weyrling and a gold's rider at that Tolena. Being seventeen turns old is a fact that doesn't make shirking your duties even less acceptable, while Thread may be a danger of the past-- being a dragonrider still brings with it certain responsibilities".

Placing a hand at Atemith's neck, he cast an annoyed glance in the direction of the older man, Tolena's grandfather. No doubt the relationship between the former Lord of Southern Hold and the Weyrs hadn't been the best, but having been a Lord, Toric should know better than to encourage his grand daughter's behaviour.

:_He is old, and he cares about his grandchildren, spoiling them even. Though..., he also likes giving the Weyrs trouble still, he encourages her to do things such as this too much, Rinneth doesn't like it_:

Atemith rumbled as he looked in the direction of the young gold, then he uttered a draconic sigh and turned around-- heading for the forwards screen with Rinneth following.

As expected, Tolena didn't answer right away, casting a quick look at her grandfather-- knowing as well as K'ryn that he would excuse her.

"Now, now, bluerider K'ryn. These days my health isn't what it used to be, and like everyone else I have the right to relax in the light gravity up here to relieve my old joints. And I hardly see my grand daughter these days, after she Impressed Rinneth, Monaco Weyr should hardly begrudge me for making her miss a few lessons to take me up here-- instead of taking up the time of one of their working riders".

Giving K'ryn a friendly slap at the shoulder, Toric moved past him to walk closer to the forwards screen, the look at his face leaving little doubt about his admiration of the view of the blue planet below.

:_Please bespeak_ _Mirraith, ask her to tell her rider that we'll get Tolena and Rinneth to return to the Weyr as quickly as possible. They'll have to come here themselves if they want her to come back right away though, knowing Tolena, she's not likely to listen to me as long as Toric is around_, K'ryn asked his blue.

Then he turned his attention back to Tolena and her grandfather, "I certainly can't deny you to come here, so enjoy the view as long as you don't interfere with the screens relaying the probe data" he said.

A glance at Rinneth told K'ryn that the young gold was not particulary happy, the hint of yellow in the young gold's eyes making it clear that the senior gold at Monaco Weyr had probably spoken to her. For the time being though, the Weyrwoman hadn't ordered them to return, too bad really-- for no matter how 'rebellious' Tolena was, her dragon wasn't going to let her ignore a direct order from the Weyrwoman.

"Don't worry bluerider, we'll make sure not to disturb you any more than we do. And we will not stay for too long" Toric said, then he frowned deeply as both dragons bugled in surprise. Rinneth even came close to crash into her rider as she abruptly backed away from the forward screen.

Then came a flash of light that was bright enough to sting K'ryn's eyes even through the dampers at the screen, and he threw his arm up to shield his eyes-- just as a strange vibration passed through the ship.

For a split second, everything seemed completely quiet, then it came...

A mental screech, like nothing K'ryn had ever heard before, hit him with tremendous force-- sending him reeling onto the floor, clawing at his head in a rather vain attempt at getting it out of his mind. Then it was joined by a flood of pain, despair and a flood of terrifying images-- some coming with the screech, others from a source which seemed familiar, but which he was unable to recognize through the torture.

And it didn't end.

-888-

Shielded against the effects of the TP weapon, the AI paused briefly to ensure that it had not been detected, then it quickly slipped inside the natives ship. A multi-faceted thing no larger than a finger-nail, it first entered the cargo bay, activating thermal sensors as it moved about the great space in search of anything living.

Body slowly cooling, something resembling a dragon-- left wing and part of its side merged with the metal wall after emerging too soon after teleporting. Prevented from falling by a set of strong leather-straps, a human hung from its neck, trembling in the grasp of whatever the TP weapon threw at him.

The AI moved closer, sensors within it registering the human's vital signs, before it made a quick decision and moved even closer to leave a tag. Containing a transmitter, the tag could be activated by the AI once it had searched the ship, marking the locations of any life forms worth saving onboard the ship.

Locating another two dragons and their passengers in the cargo bay, those alive but disabled by the effects of the weapon, also those were tagged before the AI moved on to other parts of the ship. Some of the science projects in the various rooms it passed by caused it to pause, and it made a basic scan that could be passed on to its mother AI later-- for their potential value to be determined.

Then the AI came to a sudden stop, hovering about a meter above the floor as it rotated slowly around its own axis. Moments later, it started moving again, heading straight for the bridge in response to new instructions transmitted to it by another AI probe which had just entered the ship.

Those which neither the AI, nor its masters wanted to be found snooping around by were coming around the planet to check on the ancient native ship, and they should be out of reach by the time they were in plain view. Fortunately, by the time the AI reached the bridge, the TP weapon that had been detonated nearby had spent itself, and so those on the bridge were all unconscious.

They appeared to be bleeding lightly from eyes, ears or nose, some also from the mouth as they had bitten through their tongues, however-- they were all alive at the present. A couple had hears pumping slightly irraticaly, but from the vital signs the probe was able to read, it did not seem likely that any of the humans or dragons faced imminent death. Damages caused by a TP weapon could be quite severe however, and nothing could be said for sure until each of the victims has been scanned throughoutly at a proper medical facility.

As for mental damages, such could not truly be diagnosed until the victims had regained consciousness and could be tested.

Moving from person to person-- a brown-haired human apparently in his late twenties, a young woman with black hair, a man which seemed to approach the end of his lifespan, the dragon and finally a creature which seemed to be a miniature version of the dragon, tagging them all for transport. Then the AI probe hovered, sending the transport signal for itself and anything that had been tagged to the ship that it had come from.

Out of sight from the planet, a ship on the other side of the Yokohama shimmered into partial visibility during the moment it took to teleport everything from the Yokohama to itself, exposing a silvery green hull. Then it broke away from the native ship, which it had used as an additional means of keeping itself hidden from the sensors of those it did not want to notice it. Activating its engines, it then sped away towards the borders of the solar system where it could activate a transfer point.

Behind, Pern continued its orbit around Rukbat.

All around the planet was a rapidly spreading cover of uncannily dark clouds-- spawned by the impact of an asteroid similar to the two which was even now being maneouvered towards the by immense spaceships. Having taken what they wanted from the planet and released an illness that would wipe out the species at its planet of origin, they also made sure that none of the other sapient race at the planet would be able to speak of what had happened.

And in the unlikely event of that a few should survive the asteroid impacts.., well, they would not last long without food or clean air to breathe.

-888-

Waking, K'ryn blinked slowly as he tried to orient himself, confusion giving way to apprehension as he found that his limbs didn't really want to respond. As he told his arms and legs to move, the responding movements were sluggy, if anything happened at all. Moving his head proved just as difficult, but eventually he managed to do so-- his eyes widening as he realized several things at once.

He was floating inside a gigantic, semi transparent tube filled with something which felt like water, nothing holding him up as far as he was able to see. Neither was it air which he was breathing, instead it was the water in which he floated which he inhaled and exhaled. And then he paniced, water swirling slowly around as he tried to move unresposive limbs-- and for several long moments it felt like he was choking.

"_**Calm down!**_"

The sudden shout startled K'ryn into silence, and his mouth opened and closed with the effort of breathing the liquid that he began to realize had to be something more than just ordinary water-- he tried to look around for the source of the voice. And even as he watched, the part of the tube wall which was in front of him faded to complete transparency, revealing vast space outside and several more tubes like his own. Moments later however, his eyes spotted a woman standing at a walkway outside, and although she was a stranger-- he relaxed slightly at the sight of another human.

"I'm sorry for putting you in there, and for shouting. Unfortunately it is neccessary though, I'll try to explain later when you have revived a bit more" she said, and gave him a quick smile, "my name would be Neang".

Sitting down at her knees, she pulled a hand through her dark blonde hair and another smile spread across her broad face as she watched him, "some physical weakness, possibly mental effects had to be expected after what you went through".

K'ryn shuddered as he looked at the woman, though human, there was something about her that made him feel uneasy. Opening his mouth, he tried to ask about where Atemith, and the others were, but whether it was the water or something else-- no words came out. His mind raced though, as he tried to figure out exactly what had happened and how he had ended up in this strange place-- nothing like anything he had seen before.

Something resembling worry was briefly visible on Neang's face, but then she smiled again, "your dragon is fine, but he is still sleeping, I had to keep him and the others like him in that state to avoid harm to them or to you. For now, I'm afraid that I can't enlighten you on what happened, not until you are closer to recovery. I do promise that I will tell you everything when that time come however".

Once Neang had spoken, K'ryn felt a touch to his mind-- feeling much the same as when Atemith spoke to him, and then he was put into a comatose state.


End file.
